New partners at White & Case in Dubai and Riyadh
White & Case LLP has promoted 47 lawyers to its partnership, effective January 1, 2027. The new partner class spans 13 practices across 21 offices in 13 countries, reflecting the global reach of the firm. The promotions also demonstrate how White & Case is disproportionately investing in its US capabilities for the Firm and its clients, with US-based lawyers representing 40 percent of the class – its largest US partner class since 2022.
White & Case chair Heather McDevitt said, “Our new partners are excellent lawyers who deliver exceptional results for clients. Their talent, judgment and commitment will strengthen our Firm and support our continued growth. We’re proud of what they have achieved and excited for what they’ll bring to our clients as we help them navigate their most complex matters with depth, cohesion and confidence.”
The new partners are in the firm’s Middle East offices within the Mergers & Acquistions practice: Reem AlBakr (Riyadh) and Yannick Whorms (Dubai).
Reem AlBakr is a dually qualified corporate local partner at White & Case in Riyadh. She has extensive experience in advising government owned entities, corporate clients and family offices on mergers and acquisitions, joint ventures, restructuring, divestitures and strategic investments across various sectors, including energy, technology and infrastructure projects. Reem also has considerable experience advising on antitrust matters.
Yannick Whorms is a local partner in the global Investment Funds group, based in Dubai. He regularly advises leading institutional fund managers, financial sponsors and sovereign wealth funds on the formation and launch of private and public investment funds, co-investment arrangements and joint-venture structures across a broad range of asset classes – including private equity, private credit, real estate, infrastructure and venture capital. Yannick specialises in the structuring of Shari’ah-compliant investment funds, advising on regional fund marketing and distribution requirements and the implementation of carried interest and incentive arrangements. He also advises leading institutional and sovereign clients in relation to their deployment of capital into global investments funds, co-investment vehicles and joint venture investment arrangements. He provides ongoing regulatory and corporate advice to a range of open-ended and closed-ended funds and investment managers, including advising in relation to licensing requirements for regulated asset management entities, underlying fund investment structuring and compliance with both local and cross-border requirements.
